Tobacco moistening method

ABSTRACT

A process and the apparatus for moistening a body of tobacco with a plurality of elongated cavities, the elongated walls of which are unsupported, by placing the body of tobacco in an enclosed chamber, providing steam to the chamber and suction to one end of at least one cavity, and maintaining the suction and steam until the body of tobacco has received a predetermined sufficient quantity of moisture from the steam.

O Umted States Patent 1191 [111 3,924,645

Neville et al. 5] Dec. 9, 1975 [5 TOBACCO MOISTENING METHOD 2,864,381 8/1958 Rowell 131/140 [75] Inventors: Richard Ernest Gartside Neville, FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIQNS S 15233 5 8: 23:33 487,602 6/1970 Switzerland 131/134 [73] Ass1gnee: Incorporated, White Plains, Primary Examiner Robert w. Michell Assistant ExaminerV. Millin [22] Filed: May 20, 1974 Attorney, Agent, or Firm--George W. Price; Charles J. 21 Appl. No.: 471,389

[30] Foreign Application Priority Data [57] ABSTRACT June 27, 1973 United Kingdom 30473/73 A process and the apparatus for moistening a body Of tobacco with a plurality of elongated cavities, the U-S. Cl- A; elongated walls of are unsupported placing cl-zm A243 A243 A243 the body of tobacco in an enclosed chamber, provid- A2413 3/ 12 ing steam to the chamber and suction to one end of at Field of Search 134, 140, 135, least one cavity, and maintaining the suction and 131/136, 139 steam until the body of tobacco has received a predetermined sufficient quantity of moisture from the [56] References Cited steal UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,086,446 12/1937 Smith, Jr. et al. 131/134 8 4 Drawmg F'gures Shlet 1 of 3 US. Patent Dec. 9, 1975 US. Patent Dec. 9, 1975 Sheet 2 of3 3,924,645

U.S. Patent Dec. 9, 1975 Sheet 3 of 3 3,924,645

TOBACCO MOISTENING METHOD or crumbling. This first stage of manufacture is known as preconditioning.

A tobacco conditioning process commonly used, is a vacuum process in which the leaf tobacco is placed in a chamber, the chamber evacuated and thereafter steam is admitted. The disadvantage with such a process is that not all the tobacco becomes conditioned. It has been found in practice that cold spots remain near the center of the body of tobacco and the greater the density of tobacco, the less the tobacco becomes conditioned at the center. To reduce such cold spots, the conditioning process is repeated and the steam is recycled, but where the tobacco is very dense, say over lb. per cu.ft., it is often found that conditioning at the center cannot be achieved.

To overcome the above disadvantages, processes are also known in which probes are used to draw air and steam through the tobacco. However, it is found that the resistance to the flow of steam within a body of tobacco is greatest at the juncture of the probe and the tobacco contacting it. This flow resistance is aggravated by perforations in the probe. The probe perforations also can become blocked by scraps of tobacco and by compression of the tobacco by the probe in the vicinity thereof tends to further increase resistance.

To overcome the foregoing disadvantages a further process is known in which the probe is replaced by one or more cored holes to draw air and steam through the body of tobacco. While this process is faster than the previous means, with dense tobacco cold spots still remain which are slow to condition or do not condition at all. These cold spots are usually located in the body of tobacco most remote from its surfaces and the cored hole therein.

According to the present invention a novel process is provided for moistening a body of tobacco, comprising the steps of placing the body of tobacco within an enclosed chamber, evacuating the chamber, introducing steam into the chamber, applying suction at one end of at least one but not all of two or more elongate cavities formed in the body of tobacco, the remaining cavity or cavities being upon to the chamber, and allowing the steam to pass into the tobacco until the tobacco has received a predetermined quantity of moisture; said tobacco being unsupported at the elongate surface of said cavitles.

Our co-pending US. application Ser. No. 328,486 is directed to a similar process in which steam is introduced into an evacuated chamber while suction is applied to one or more unsupported elongate cavities in the tobacco. On the other hand, our co-pending US. application Ser. No. 428,922 also is directed to a similar process in which steam is introduced into an evacuated chamber and allowed to pass into a body of tobacco having one or more unsupported elongate cavities open to the chamber. In this instance, no suction is provided. An essential feature of the present invention however, is that two or more unsupported core holes are provided in the tobacco, and suction is applied to at least one cavity while the remaining cavity or cavities are open to the chamber. The cavities open to the chamber are spaced inwardly from the sides toward the center of the tobacco body and the steam admitted by such cavities substantially enhances the elimination cold spots encountered in the use of prior known processes.

Preferably each cavity in the body of tobacco is formed by coring the body prior to placing it within the chamber, and the vacuum may be applied to the cavity or cavities simultaneously with or prior to the introduction of steam into the chamber to draw steam through the body of tobacco.

Generally the present method comprises forming the cavities in the body of tobacco by removing cores, sealing one end of a substantially central cored hole while leaving the others open to the chamber, connecting the other end of the sealed central hole to a vacuum pump and drawing steam through the body of tobacco through the holes open to the chamber and the sides of the tobacco body.

The cores can be removed from the body of tobacco while inside or outside the chamber by means of an open ended and sharp edged cover tube pressed into the tobacco and then withdrawn with the core, by means of a trepanning cutter or by inserting a core mould during packing, which is removed before processing.

Embodiments of the process according to the invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the apparatus shown in the accompanying drawing in which:

FIG. 1 is a sectional view schematically illustrating an enclosed chamber in which a vacuum is applied at the bottom of an enclosed tobacco body in accordance with the present invention,

FIG. 2 is a view similar to FIG. 1 in which a vacuum is applied at the top of an enclosed tobacco body,

FIG. 3 is a sectional view schematically illustrating a form of the novel apparatus designed to achieve a more continuous process, and

FIG. 4 is a diagrammatic illustration of a modification of the apparatus of FIG. 3 and a coring station.

As shown in FIG. 1, a body of tobacco 10 having a plurality of cored holes 11 three in this instance, rests on a flat trolley 13 placed in a chamber 14. The trolley 13 is provided with a central well 16 connectible with a vacuum pump (not shown) by conduit means or pipes 18, 19 and 20.

The lower end of the central cored hole or cavity 11 communicates with the wall 16 which has the additional purpose of collecting tobacco scraps to prevent them entering the pipe 18. The upper end of the central hole 11 is sealed by a heavy impervious blanket 22 laid on top of the body of tobacco 10 and is held in close contact therewith by the vacuum applied to the central cored hole.

While a vacuum or suction is applied via pipes 18, 19 and 20 and well 16, steam is supplied to the chamber 14 via an inlet pipe 23. After conditioning process is completed, the chamber 14 is vented by a closable vent pipe 24.

In an alternate arrangement shown in FIG. 2, a body of tobacco 25 having three cored holes or elongated cavities 27, 28 and 29 is placed on a flat trolley 31 having no aperture therein. The upper end of the central core 28 is enclosed by an inverted funnel-shaped housing 32 connected via conduit means or pipes 34 and 35 to a vacuum pump (not shown). The housing 32'may have downwardly projecting spikes 37 serving to secure the funnel in position on the tobacco. Steam enters chamber 21 through inlet pipe 38 and the chamber is vented by a closable vent pipe 39 after the tobacco conditioning is finished.

FIG. 3 illustrates further modified apparatus designed to achieve a more continuous process using a rectangular bell chamber 40. In this arrangement a body of tobacco 41 having three cored holes 42, 43 and 44 rests on a flat trolley 45. A vacuum or suction may be applied to the chamber 40 via a pipe 46 to assist filling the chamber with steam via a pipe 51 from beneath tracks 59.

A funnel or funnel-shaped housing 47 is slidably mounted in the roof of the chamber 40 and urged downwardly by means of a spring 48. The funnel may be provided with spikes corresponding to the spikes 37 of housing 32 (see FIG. 2) and connects the central cored hole or elongated cavity 42 to a vacuum or source of suction (not shown) via a pipe 47A. While the bottom ends of the elongated holes or cavities 42, 43 and 44 are closed by the trolley 45, the upper ends of the holes or cavities 43 and 44 remain open to the chamber 40.

The chamber 40, which is in bell form, can be lifted for loading and unloading. The trolley 45 has wheels 49 which run on a track 50 and can be moved from a coring station (not shown) where a coring head descends to effect a series of single corings or multiple coring of the tobacco. A vent valve 52 corresponding to vent pipes 24 and 39 is provided in the side of the chamber 40.

The cores of tobacco may be ejected from the corer into the trolley well 16 in FIG. 1 or into a separate container (not shown) within the chamber 26 in FIG. 2 and chamber 44 of FIG. 3 where they are also conditioned.

An advantage of an elongate hole is that resistance to the flow of steam is considerably reduced as compared with the resistance caused by the probe as mentioned above, in which case the process time can be reduced.

A further advantage is that a larger hole can be produced by coring without further substantially compressing the tobacco which again reduces the resistance to flow.

Referring to FIG. 1, a typical bale or body of tobacco 1t) weighing 448 lbs having a density of 2025 lb/cu.ft. can be conditioned by means of the apparatus shown in the following manner:

The tobacco is first cored with three vertical holes 11 through the bale and then placed on the trolley 13 with the central cored hole 11 communicating with the vacuum pump (not shown). The upper end of the central cored hole 11 is covered by the plate or blanket 22 and the two outer holes 11 are left open to the chamber 14. After wheeling the trolley 13 into the chamber 14, the chamber 14 is closed by airtight doors (not shown) and a vacuum applied. After about 4-5 minutes when the pressure is down to about 27 inches of mercury, steam is let in to the chamber 14 while the vacuum is maintained. After 3 minutes the steam is shut off and the chamber 14 vented for a period of two minutes. A total conditioning time of about 10 minutes is achieved.

Referring to FIG. 3, a typical bale or body of tobacco 41 can be conditioned by means of the apparatus shown in the following manner:

The tobacco 41 is first cored with three vertical holes 42, 43 and 44 through the bale and then placed on the trolley 45 which is wheeled to the processing station and the chamber is lowered thereover while at the same time the funnel 47 is urged into the bale over the central cored hole 42. The vacuum is applied and steam is let into the chamber. After a predetermined time, the steam is 'shut off and the chamber vented. With a closing fitting bell chamber 40 and high capacity pumps, a total conditioning time of 5 minutes and a cycle time of 6 minutes can be achieved-as follows:

Pull Vacuum 1% minutes Steam Back 3 minutes Vent j q /2 minutes Total conditioning time 5 minutes A 7 Change cases 1 minute minutes If desired the additional vacuum pipe 46 maybe applied direct to the chamber 40 to enable the chamber 40 to be evacuated in a shorter time.

J. FIG. 4 illustrates a modification .of thearrangement of FIG. '-3 where .the trolley and track are replaced by a perforate conveyor belt 56 running over a plate 57. The belt 56,.with or without chains, extends 5 from a coring "station 58 to a processing station 59. A

chamber 61 is provided with seals 62 for sealing engagement with the belt 56 and may be lowered into place by meansof a motor 63 supported on a framework F. The plate 57 is provided with an aperture or apertures 64 over which. a body of tobacco 65 is conveyed by the belt, for alignment with a well or leaftrap 67 disposed below the level of the upper run of the conveyor belt 56 and communication with vacuum equip- 'ment68 via a pipe 70 and an aperture 74 in the plate 57. A steam inlet pipe 71 is connected to an aperture 72 in the plate 57. 1

The coring station 58 comprises a multiple coring head 76 arranged on the framework F to be hydraulically or mechanically driven in a vertical direction. The

he'ad 76 carries a row of opened ended and sharp edged I corner tubes (preferably three), one shown at 77.

After appropriate positioning of the body of tobacco 65, at the coring station 58, the head 76 is driven down to form three equally spaced aligned holes 79 (only one shown due to the elevation). The body of tobacco 65 is moved by the'belt 56 from the coring station 58 to a second or intermediate station where the central cored hole 79 is covered by a plate or impervious blanket 83.

The other two cored holes remain uncovered. From the second station the body of tobacco 65 is moved to the processing station 59 where the chamber 61 is lowered into sealing engagement with the belt 56. The chamber 61 is evacuated vacuum equipment 68 via the pipe 70 and, at the same time, steam is allowed to enter via the aperture 72. After conditioning, the steamis shut off and the chamber 61 is vented via a closeable vent pipe In the arrangement of FIG. 4, the steam may be fed in or the vacuum applied by flexible hose (not shown) connected to the bell shaped chamber.

While three cored holes are normally sufficient, when the tobacco is a higher density, further cored holes may be providedThe holes may be symmetrically arranged and one or more selected holes can be connected to the vacuum pump by making the well (FIGS. 1 and 4) suitably shaped to communicate with the bottoms of the selected holes while still adequately supporting the tobacco or by having a sufficiently large funnel (FIGS. 2 and 3) to embrace the upper ends of one or more selected holes. The cored holes may be made singly or as described with reference to FIG. 4, multiple holes may be formed simultaneously. A series of multiple holes may also be desirable.

In any one of the above described tobacco moistening apparatus, it is possible to reverse the direction of steam flow by suitable interchange of the steam inlet and vacuum pipes. One or more selected cored holes may be connected to the steam supply and to the chamber via valves, so that said selected cored holes can be isolated from the chamber during evacuation of the chamber or only when steam is admitted.

Although several embodiments of the invention have been illustrated and described in detail, it is to be expressly understood that the invention is. not limited thereto. Various changes may be made in the design and arrangement of the parts without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as the same will now be understood by those skilled in the art.

I claim:

1. A process for moistening a body of tobacco having a plurality of elongated cavities the elongated walls of which are unsupported, comprising the steps of:

coring the body to provide the plurality of elongated cavities;

placing the body of tobacco within an enclosed chamber;

providing suction and steam to said chamber of which one is applied into one end at least one of the elongated cavities and the other is applied into the chamber outside of the body of tobacco with at least one other of the elongated cavities communicating with the chamber; and

maintaining the suction and steam to said chamber until the body of tobacco has received a sufficient quantity of moisture from the steam.

2. The process in accordance with claim 1, and,

LII

coring the body of tobacco to form the plurality of cavities and removing the cores therefrom before the body of tobacco is placed in the chamber.

3. The process in accordance with claim 1, further comprising the step of:

providing flow impervious means to one side of the body of tobacco thereby closing one end of each cavity before providing suction and steam to said chamber.

4. The process in accordance with claim 1, further comprising the steps before placing the body of tobacco in the chamber of:

coring the body of tobacco to form the cavities therein; and

providing flow impervious means to one side of the body of tobacco thereby closing one end of each cavity.

5. The process in accordance with claim 1, wherein,

the steam is applied into the chamber around the body of tobacco, and

,the suction is applied into one end of at least one of the cavities causing the steam to flow through the body of tobacco into such cavity from whence it is evacuated.

6. A process for moistening a body of tobacco having a plurality of elongated cavities the elongated walls of which are unsupported, comprising the steps of:

coring the body of tobacco thereby forming elongated cavities before placing the body of tobacco into the chamber,

placing the body of tobacco within an enclosed chamber; and

evacuating the chamber and introducing steam into the chamber while applying suction to one end of at least one of the cavities until the body of tobacco has received a sufficient quantity of moisture.

7. The process in accordance with claim 6, further comprising the step of:

removing the cores during coring of the body of tobacco.

8. The process in accordance with claim '7, further comprising the step of:

providing flow impervious means to one side of the body of tobacco thereby closing the end of the cav ity opposite from the end to which suction is applied prior to applying such suction. 

1. A process for moistening a body of tobacco having a plurality of elongated cavities the elongated walls of which are unsupported, comprising the steps of: coring the body to provide the pluraliTy of elongated cavities; placing the body of tobacco within an enclosed chamber; providing suction and steam to said chamber of which one is applied into one end at least one of the elongated cavities and the other is applied into the chamber outside of the body of tobacco with at least one other of the elongated cavities communicating with the chamber; and maintaining the suction and steam to said chamber until the body of tobacco has received a sufficient quantity of moisture from the steam.
 2. The process in accordance with claim 1, and, coring the body of tobacco to form the plurality of cavities and removing the cores therefrom before the body of tobacco is placed in the chamber.
 3. The process in accordance with claim 1, further comprising the step of: providing flow impervious means to one side of the body of tobacco thereby closing one end of each cavity before providing suction and steam to said chamber.
 4. The process in accordance with claim 1, further comprising the steps before placing the body of tobacco in the chamber of: coring the body of tobacco to form the cavities therein; and providing flow impervious means to one side of the body of tobacco thereby closing one end of each cavity.
 5. The process in accordance with claim 1, wherein, the steam is applied into the chamber around the body of tobacco, and the suction is applied into one end of at least one of the cavities causing the steam to flow through the body of tobacco into such cavity from whence it is evacuated.
 6. A process for moistening a body of tobacco having a plurality of elongated cavities the elongated walls of which are unsupported, comprising the steps of: coring the body of tobacco thereby forming elongated cavities before placing the body of tobacco into the chamber, placing the body of tobacco within an enclosed chamber; and evacuating the chamber and introducing steam into the chamber while applying suction to one end of at least one of the cavities until the body of tobacco has received a sufficient quantity of moisture.
 7. The process in accordance with claim 6, further comprising the step of: removing the cores during coring of the body of tobacco.
 8. The process in accordance with claim 7, further comprising the step of: providing flow impervious means to one side of the body of tobacco thereby closing the end of the cavity opposite from the end to which suction is applied prior to applying such suction. 